Holden Captiva 7 slips below $30k

HOLDEN has dropped the entry price of its Korean-made Captiva 7 large SUV to $29,990 plus on-road costs, marking a $6000 drop over its 2006 launch price and further undercutting all key family-favoured rivals.

The price realignment comes as a part of a 2014 model year upgrade to both the Captiva 7 seven-seat family hauler and the Captiva 5 mid-size SUV that also brings mild updates across the range.

Included in the updates is a change in specification names for the Captiva 7, with the old SX, CX and LX trim names changing to LS, LT and LTZ respectively to fall into line with General Motors’ current SUV naming policy.

Prices for all variants in the automatic-only Captiva 7 range are down by $2500 apiece, kicking off at $29,990 plus on-road costs for the LS two-wheel drive four-cylinder petrol, $35,990 for the LT V6 all-wheel drive and $39,990 in range-topping LTZ V6 AWD guise.

Variants powered by the 2.2-litre turbo-diesel engine start at $32,990 for the two-wheel drive LS, $36,990 for the all-wheel drive LT and $40,990 for the LTZ.

Already one of the more budget-friendly options in Australia’s busy large SUV segment, the base Captiva 7 is priced well below its equivalently specified competitors including the locally-built Ford Territory TX ($39,990), the Toyota Kluger KX-R ($40,490), Nissan’s new Pathfinder ST ($39,990), Jeep’s Grand Cherokee Laredo $43,000, the Hyundai Santa Fe ($37,990) and Kia Sorento ($38,490).

The only vehicle that undercuts the Captiva 7 in its category is the Dodge Journey-based Fiat Freemont MPV/SUV that is priced from $25,990.

Along with the price cuts, the Captiva 7 range gains a restyled grille and front fascia, as well as redesigned chrome exhaust tips and a new LED tail-light design at the rear.

All seven-seat variants now feature keyless entry and start, while the LT and LTZ adds side steps and the LT features new 18-inch alloy wheels.

Holden’s five-seat Captiva 5 range also benefits from a price cut, with a $2000 drop for the base 2WD petrol LT matched with a manual gearbox that now starts at $25,990.

All other Captiva 5 variants are down by $1800 with the LT petrol automatic starting from $28,190 and the LTZ all-wheel drive auto from $35,190, while diesel-powered five-seaters are down to $32,190 for the LT and $35,190 for the LTZ.

The only five-door, five-seat SUV in the mid-size class to undercut the Captiva 5 is Kia’s two-wheel drive petrol Sportage Si, which retails for $25,490, excluding on-roads.

Updates to the Captiva 5 include chrome exterior door handles on the LTZ and the LT gains new 18-inch alloys.

The seven-and-a-half year-old Captiva is still a popular choice in Australia, despite a raft of newer models having arrived since it launch back in 2006.

In 2013, Holden sold 13,282 Captiva 7s to place third in the segment behind the top-selling Toyota Prado on 14,568 sales and the Ford Territory which shifted 14,261 units to the end of December.

The Captiva 5 sold 6751 units last year, which is well behind the results of its key rivals including the Mazda CX-5 (20,129), Toyota RAV4 (16,983), Subaru Forester (13,649) and Honda CR-V (12,510). 2014 Holden Captiva pricing*

Captiva 5
LT petrol 2WD	$25,990 (-$2000)
LT petrol 2WD (a)	$28,190 (-$1800)
LT diesel AWD (a)	$32,190 (-$1800)
LTZ petrol 2WD (a)	$31,190 (-$1800)
LTZ diesel AWD (a)	$35,190 (-$1800)
Captiva 7
LS petrol 2WD (a)	$29,990 (-$2500)
LS diesel 2WD (a)	$32,990 (-$2500)
LT V6 petrol AWD (a)	$35,990 (-$2500)
LT diesel AWD (a)	$36,990 (-$2500)
LTZ V6 petrol AWD (a)	$39,990 (-$2500)
LTZ diesel AWD (a)	$40,990 (-$2500)